If you have a family history of colon cancer and have received a colon cancer diagnosis, you may wonder if your genes are responsible for your colon cancer.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 in 30 cases of colorectal cancer (colon and rectum cancer) are heredity, which means you received mutated genes (made up of DNA) from your parents that caused cancer.
Let’s talk about how your genes define if you will have colon cancer, what you can do to prevent it if you’re at risk, and where you can go in Brooklyn and Westlake, OH, for effective colonization cancer treatment.
Genetics and Colon Cancer: What’s the Link?
A change in the DNA characterizes cancer. In other words, the genes that control the function of your cells become mutated. You inherit your genes from your parents, which is why you look like them. However, that’s not it. The genes do much more than this. They also control how your cells grow, divide into new cells, and die.
Some genes – called oncogenes or cancer-causing genes – help your cells grow, divide and stay alive, while other genes – called tumor suppressor genes – control the dividing ability of your cells or cause them to die at the right time. Cancer occurs when your DNA is mutated, which turns on the oncogenes and turns off the tumor suppressor genes, leading to out-of-control cell growth.
You develop heredity colon cancer when you receive mutated genes from your parents. For example, if you’ve inherited a genetic condition called Lynch syndrome (also known as heredity nonpolyposis colorectal cancer), you’re much more likely to develop colon cancer, especially at a younger age. Similarly, if you have familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), also an inherited disorder, your “brake” on the cell growth will be turned off, causing the formation of hundreds of polyps in your colon, which will develop into cancer over time.
What You Can Do
You can do many things to know your risk for colon cancer and prevent cancer from developing in the first place. For instance, if your close family member has received a diagnosis of colon cancer, you can go for genetic testing and counseling.
Colon cancer screening is also an excellent way to help prevent colon cancer and find it early. Since most colon cancers begin as precancerous polyps or abnormal growth in the colon, your doctor can see them during screening and remove them so that they don’t develop into cancerous polyps in the future.
Colon Cancer Screening in Brooklyn and Westlake, OH
If you have a genetic predisposition for colon cancer, start screening for colon cancer at a younger age and get screened more frequently.
At North Shore Gastroenterology, our compassionate and skilled gastroenterologists specialize in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of various ailments of the gastrointestinal tract, including colon cancer. Our dedicated providers have built an excellent reputation for using advanced technology to diagnose and treat the GIT problem of their patients.
To make an appointment for colon cancer screening, call us today at (440) 808-1212 or request your appointment by filling out our online form. We look forward to helping you prevent colon cancer!
